Meghan Calvagna - Discovery Center Museum---711 N. Main St—Rockford,IL---61103 , IL. Summer 2010.

Over the summer I interned for a non-profit children’s science and art museum in Rockford, IL called the Discovery Center Museum as a public relations, marketing, and event coordinating intern.  I learned very quickly that in the world non-profit organizations everyone wears a variety of different hats to contribute to the success of that organization.  I would find myself proof reading brochures, press releases, and making press kits one day, then setting up for events, calling media outlets and printing out hundreds of schedules and brochures the next.  My favorite task that I was asked to help with while interning this summer was assisting my supervisor with media advertising, whether that be a radio psa, television interview, or online advertising.  I enjoyed the fact that while I was working under a supervisor, I had free reins over how I was to go about executing those projects.  Taking this internship just further proved to me that when I graduate I would like to find a job in the public relations field.     

Jim Fry- Legislative Intern, Illinois State Representative Donald L. Moffitt's (R-Gilson) Office, 64 South Prairie Street #5 Galesburg, IL 61401. Summer 2010.

This summer, I had the privilege of working with Illinois State Representative Don Moffitt and his Legislative Aid Ms. Cathy Heimann.  I spent the summer consumed in issues concerning the citizens of the state of Illinois and specifically Rep. Moffitt's district.  I was able to have many different experiences to truly get an idea of the daily processes of a Legislative office.  I worked on press releases dealing with major bills passed in the IL General Assembly and I  dealt with many state department and constituant issues.  I was able to attend events with the Representative and understand what he does on a daily basis and meet some very interesting people in the world of politics, including United States Congressman Aaron Schock (R-Peoria).  Also, since it was an election year, I got the chance to work on the Representative's campaign by putting together fliers, attending a press conferences and events, powerpoints, and doing research on major legislation that had been passed.  It was a great summer with great experiences.

Derek Keist - Journalism Internship, Daily Leader, 318 N. Main Street, Pontiac, IL 61764. Summer 2010.

For my internship, I was given story assignments and then I set up interviews to write my articles. I also watched and learned how to paginate pages, prepare photos, and meet deadlines. Throughout my internship, I became better at interviewing people and quickly putting together stories. The stories I was assigned varied from sitting in on city council meetings to going out and interviewing members of the Wall Dogs, which is a traveling group of artists. I learned how some articles involve more listening to meetings, while others involve digging and hunting for interviews. By the end of the internship, I feel I now have a better idea of the life of a journalist.

Brittany Landon. - Knox County Teen Court, Galesburg, IL. Spring and Summer 2010.

I conducted my internship with Knox County Teen Court. This program gives teens in Knox County who have committed a misdemeanor offense, a second chance. If the teen pleads guilty, he or she can attend a teen court trial instead of Juvenal Court. At a teen court trial the teen will be judged and sentence to community service by a jury of his or her peers. Everyone involved in the trial, besides the judge and case worker, are local teen volunteers. I had been active with Teen Court since I was in junior high school, so when the opportunity for internship arose I was very excited. The hours were very flexible. I can into the office during the afternoon, when I was out of class. I also was often able to work at home. During this internship I completed many tasks. I did a lot of office work, filing, mailings, and taking, or making phone calls. But I was also able to attend and help on court nights as well as do some recruiting for volunteers. I am most proud or my attorney training program. The majority of my internship was developing and conducting an attorney training program for volunteer attorneys.

Samantha Latora. - I Do Events Intern, Washington, IL. Summer 2010  

This summer I interned at a company called I Do Events.  I Do Events rents out chair covers and linens for wedding receptions, anniversary parties, and corporate events.  I felt that this internship really helped me by teaching me the ins and outs of weddings.  I have learned small details that are important to know when planning events.  This internship also helped me to network and meet people in the Peoria area that are involved in the planning of weddings and events.

Ben Morrow - Independent Study on "White Skin." Pune, India. Fall 2009 (while on the ACM India Study Abroad Program).

As I walked through the streets of Pune, India, I couldn’t help but notice the attention I was receiving from so many unfamiliar faces. Was it the clothes that I was wearing or did I not comb my hair this morning? After time progressed, I realized that there was only one reason that I was being stared at. That reason was my skin color. I became so interested in this phenomenon that I decided to write my Independent Study Project based on it. What are the implications of having white skin in a foreign country? What has white skin meant in the history of the World? In my Independent Study Project, “Is It fair? A Study of the Bias of White Skin in India”, I dissect these questions and give photographic evidence of how businesses and modeling companies have taken advantage of what has become an obsession for fair skin in India.

Audra Neubaum - Activities Staff seasonal personnel at Philmont Scout Ranch, 47 Caballo Road, Cimarron New Mexico, 87714. Summer 2010

I worked as a staff member and audiovisual technician for the Activities department at Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico. Philmont is situated in the middle of the old wild west, lying on over 137,000 acres of the Rocky Mountains in northeastern New Mexico.  The ranch was formerly owned by Waite Phillips, the oil baron who started Phillips 66 but he decided to donate most of that land to the Boy Scouts of America. Philmont is now home to the 25,000 scouts who come there every summer to hike out the terrain on 10 day expeditions through the wilderness of this premiere high adventure base. My responsibilities consisted of checking people in and out of the Welcome Center, running AV (audio visual) for both campfires as well as other special events, and managing activities for the staff. My favorite part of the job was running AV equipment or checking in crews and getting to meet people from as far away as Alaska and Japan. 

See my blog (complete with pictures)at this link: http://blogs.monm.edu/aneubaum/ .

Michelle Nutting - KTVI/KPLR-TV St. Louis, Missouri. Summer 2010

For my internship at KTVI/KPLR-TV I was required to do a number of things that helped me gain more knowledge on the field of broadcast journalism. I worked on the web, updating videos and photos to Facebook, as well as other duties like responding to viewer e-mails, updating Twitter, and loading stories to the new website that I helped launch called “My Neighborhoods.” The best part about being an intern for the web was being able to write stories for the station’s website. I would take packages that reporters or anchors have put into the system and make them “web-ready.” This was the best part because I got to improve my writing skills as well as see my work in action. Viewers could comment on these stories and it was always reassuring to see positive thoughts. I also had the opportunity as an intern to work special events. I helped with the American Idol Auditions and the America’s Next Top Model Auditions in St. Louis. I also got to cover two major movie premieres that took place in St. Louis; Charlie St. Cloud staring Zac Efron and The Other Guys staring Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell. My favorite part about the internship at this station was being able to go out with the reporters a few times. It is an all-day process and I really learned more about the business. Going out with the reporters includes going to the editorial meetings, finding a reporter who is willing to take you out with them, and observing them all day and be ready if they need you. I learned a lot about live shots, b-roll, editing, pretty much everything that a reporter and a photographer does on a “typical day,” which I learned aren’t so common in the world of journalism

Brittney Parker - Public Relations and Community Relations Intern, Rockford Foresters (minor league baseball team), Rockford, Illinois, Summer 2010.

As a public relations and community relations intern, I was responsible for updating the team’s website on a daily basis. Typical daily updates included adding and updating player profiles and pictures, uploading game-day pictures, creating game day stories, as well as writing articles telling the public of front office work. Immediately following all games, I reported all scores to local media stations via telephone communication. I also created all the stories in game-day program. This internship not only taught me a lot about public relations within the sports world, but also community relations with season ticket holders and fans. It also gave me the opportunity to create networking opportunities with co-workers and season ticket holders.

Sybille Rizzolli - Electronic Media Intern. BMW. Munich, Germany. May 2010 – August 2010.

This internship gave me the opportunity to work for a very well-known international company. The department I worked for produced the TV footage material for journalists and other sources of interest. It was a great experience to work for BMW and to see how a cooperation functions and how it differs from other smaller companies I have worked for. I learned a lot about brand building and how much work it is to keep the brand image. I was also able to lead and accompany many different shootings where I met German politicians and among other people also Katy Perry.

Emilee Wilde - "Street Team" Intern, Quad City River Bandits (minor league baseball),  Davenport, Iowa Summer 2010

As a "street team" intern, I was responsible for randomly choosing the particiapants for the on-field performances during the game, as well as player and mascot appearances throught the Quad Cities area. We were in charge of birthdays at the ballpark, helping schedule the other "street team" interns for the promotions they were responsible for during the game, and stand at the US Bank conceirge desk to answer questions and direction fans to the proper areas. We also had the amazing job of making sure the fans had the best experience at the stadium by dancing on the dugouts and taking Rascal, the mascot, around so both kids and adults alike could get their pictures and autographs with him. This internship was wonderful since we didn't do the same events everyday, and you always knew you would learn something new as soon as you walked in the office doors.

CATA Class of 2010 - Internships